Other Pamplin Media Group sites

David Wu won't leave office until President signs debt ceiling bill to law

Wu releases video explaining thoughts on 'final' vote

Beleaguered Congressman David Wu won't leave office until President Obama signs a debt limit bill into law, a spokesman told The Spotlight Monday.

This is the clearest explanation Wu's office has given regarding the timeline for the lawmaker's planned departure from the U.S. House of Representatives. In the midst of allegations of unwanted and aggressive sexual contact against an 18-year-old daughter of a friend and campaign donor, Wu announced July 26 he would step down. The seven-term representative of Oregon's 1st Congressional District denies breaking any laws and has maintained the still-unexplained encounter was consensual.

"He pledged to stay through the crisis and the crisis isn't over until the President signs it into law," Wu spokesman Erik Dorey said. "We are not talking about weeks and weeks down the road."

Wu voted in favor Monday evening of the controversial bill that would raise the debt ceiling limit and cut federal government spending. The bill was passed 269-161 and is expected to be voted on in the Senate Tuesday. Obama must then sign the bill for it to become law.

The bill is seen as a compromise between Democrats and Republicans who each brought different, often contradictory, agendas to the table.

Congressman David Wu released a short video statement Monday evening explaining his thoughts on the bill.

Wu filmed the video that afternoon from Washington D.C., a short time before he voted.

Wu said in the statement that vote would likely be his last.

"The possibility always exists that something could go wrong in the Senate," Dorey said.

The video statement can be found here: http://video.house.gov/cao/hrs/RepWu.html.

Here is a transcript of Wu's remarks:

"We're about an hour and a half from a historic vote on the debt ceiling. Let me be very clear about this: Our nation is being held hostage. In 230 years, we have not defaulted on our obligations; and a default would cause chaos, both in our country and around the world, throwing our economy and everything else into a really chaotic situation. The legislation before us to prevent that chaos - to prevent a default - is really abhorrent to me and the values that I hold. It makes deep cuts, cuts in programs that I care about: in science and technology, in help for the poorest among us. I have great difficulties with this legislation.

Unfortunately, in some instances in our lives, we have to give up on some of those things that we really care about for a greater good: to keep our nation going forward, in this instance. I will promise you that I will continue to study this legislation, to ponder it and to keep on reflecting on it until I actually go in the chamber and press that button: yes or no; but I will not let this nation descend into chaos. That is something we have to get beyond and live to fight another day.

This is a crucial vote. It is likely to be my last vote, and I want to thank the people of Oregon for giving me this, this seat in Congress temporarily, which is the greatest honor that an immigrant child can ever have-or any person in America can ever have.